


Only a Matter of Time

by blackm00n5



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: AU of an AU, M/M, breaking time, med student
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-30
Updated: 2015-07-17
Packaged: 2018-04-06 22:11:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4238427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackm00n5/pseuds/blackm00n5
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frank DeFresne just wanted to get through his internship so he could get his medical license. That's all. He didn't want to get sucked up into the danger surrounding the young men in the Blood Gulch Juvenile Detention center. He refused to be one with these criminals. </p><p>Then he meets Donut. And he realizes that his plans are officially null and void.</p><p>Based entirely off of BloodstainedBlondes 'Breaking Time' au.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BloodstainedBlonde](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BloodstainedBlonde/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Breaking Time](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2060343) by [BloodstainedBlonde](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BloodstainedBlonde/pseuds/BloodstainedBlonde). 



> Oh my god. This was originally going to be another drabble but it quickly went totally out of control.  
> And yes I am aware Doc was already mentioned in the main story and he's another inmate. I do not care. This idea hit me and exploded into....this.

Frank had quite a few conflicted feelings as he walked in through the front doors of the Blood Gulch Juvenile Detention center. The place scared him, made his bones quiver uncomfortably. He had heard horror stories from other students who had done their internship here, how some of the kids here were cold blooded killers. The cruelty these kids possessed. It terrified the nurse-in-training. How was he supposed to keep himself out of harms way when he was tending to criminals?

 

But even with that fear, he was thrilled. He had an actual internship, and it was only his first year in university! He had the chance to learn directly from experience, get training from a veteran in the nursing field. So what if it was for a bunch of delinquents? He was still doing a job. 

 

The curious stares he received as he walked through B block to get to the medical offices made his skin crawl and he forced his shoulders back as he continued forward. Show no fear. If he didn't let them know he was afraid, perhaps they'd just ignore him. He pointedly ignored the wolf whistles and leers, hands gripping his files tightly. An uninterested guard gestured down a hallway to tell him where to go, and Frank nodded his thanks. 

 

These hallways felt much safer. Cool and white instead of the harsh gunmetal gray that the inmates lived in. The doors opened and closed quietly, voices echoing out into the hallway from different rooms. The medical office was halfway down the hall, a large room that connected to two other rooms. One was filled with cots. An older woman looked up from her spot behind the desk and offered Frank a smile as she stood. She was plump, a pleasant pink tint to her cheeks. Frank could only assume she was the only kind face in this prison. He offered his files and she took them gently.

 

"You must be Franklin DeFresne! Its a pleasure, it'll be so nice to have some help around here." The woman said, voice gentle and soft. Frank couldn't help but smile as he sat down in one of the chairs. 

 

"My name is Maggie. A lot of what goes on is patching these boys up after a fight. Every now and then we get someone who's actually sick. " the nurse explained as she puttered around her office, examining Frank's files and cleaning up. Franks smile didn't falter, and he clasped his hands politely on his lap as as he waited. 

 

The next few hours were taken up by Maggie giving a tour, showing him where anything he might need would be. Frank listened carefully, falling into sync with the woman easily. He only barely was able to resist from bouncing excitedly as two young men were tossed into the room by guards. Maggie immediately took the larger boy into one of the back rooms, instructing Frank to tend to the smaller one. He nodded, hand running through his sandy hair before kneeling in front of the bloodied boy. 

 

"Can you tell me how you feel? What hurts, is anything numb, stuff like that?" He asked as he shone his small light into the boy's eyes. Once convinced there was no concussion to worry about, he turned to begin gathering the wound dressings. 

 

"I, uh...." the boy paused, looking down at himself as if trying to figure out what was going on with his own body. "My chest hurts. So does my head." 

 

Frank nodded, seating himself beside the brunet. He sprayed a cloth with water before wiping the blood away, trying to be gentle. The wound itself was an inch or so long, and Frank apologized as he pressed peroxide to it. The boy flinched away, but made no noise. Checking the rest of the damage went by quickly, and Frank finally stood with a nod. 

 

"You should be set." He announced with a smile. "Your ribs may be bruised, but the pain should subside completely by the end of the week. Keep the cut clean, okay?" The boy stood, wincing and gently cradling his left side before nodding absently. He waved a dismissive hand as he passed. 

 

"Uh huh. Thanks, Doc." He said.

 

"I'm not a doctor." Frank corrected, but the words fell on deaf ears. The boy seemed to be in a hurry to get out of there, and Frank made sure he wasn't coming back before doing a little victory dance. His first job! He had successfully patched up his first patient! The pride bubbled in his stomach and he collapsed on one of the chairs with a little sigh.

 

It couldn't have been more than a few minutes that he sat there basking in his success before Maggie was ushering the other boy out the door. She turned and smiled warmly at Frank, giving him a thumbs up. 

 

"See? These boys aren't so bad. Most of them just need a little love." She sighed, hands clasped together in front of her chest. She sighed once more, wistfully, before waving a hand as if waving the thought away.

 

Frank bit his tongue. These boys were criminals. How could Maggie think they're 'not so bad'? Delinquents. Thieves and murderers. Thugs and gangsters. Frank just didn't understand. After all, no young man would be in here if he didnt deserve it. But, that expression on Maggie's face told him it wouldnt do him any good to state this. She obviously looked for the best in people, strived to nurture and care for everyone. Perhaps that was the very reason she worked in a juvenile detention center, a need to care for these children. 

 

Because even if they were hardened criminals, that's all they were to Maggie. They were children who had lost their way, who needed a gentle hand and caring voice to guide them back onto the right track. And who was Frank to try and correct her? He knew it was useless, that these boys were lost causes, but Maggie believed in them. It was hard not to admire, in some ways. Frank wanted to have that kind of optimism, to be able to believe there was more to these young men. But he was a realist, he understood that nothing would change for anyone here. They'd grow up to be criminals and that's all they'd ever be.

 

Frank was shaken from his reverie when Maggie placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. He blinked his eyes back into focus and met her gaze, feeling a mild warmth wash over him at the loving glint. His lips twitched up without him telling them to. 

 

"Really, Sarge, this isn't necessary. I'm fine." A faint voice cut through the silence and Frank looked towards the door. His brows furrowed a bit when Maggie sighed and he turned to look at her again. She was staring at the open doorway.

 

"That poor boy." She said quietly. "He's back already? Bless those young men who care so much about him." She moved to open the cupboard as she spoke.

 

Frank didn't get the chance to say anything before two boys were stepping in through the door. The larger one - a rough looking young man with harsh eyes and a firm jaw - was nearly carrying the smaller boy. His hands were surprisingly gentle in their hold on the other boy, and Frank's immediate thought was that they were somehow related. Why else would this boy - more man than boy, really - hold him so softly? 

 

And then, his eyes landed on the smaller boy and he felt his heart leap into the base of his throat. Silky looking blond hair and bright eyes. Plump, pink lips that were pulled into a pained grimace so subtle, Frank nearly missed it. He was slight, but there was no denying the lean muscle underneath the bland fabric of his shirt. There were marks on his neck, some new and some fading. As Frank realized that those marks were hickies, his initial suspicion of 'related' veered toward 'dating'. Or perhaps it was all casual? Either way, those hickies disappeared beneath his shirt and Frank was certain there'd be more across his chest.

 

As the larger boy, Sarge apparently, handed the blond off to Maggie, Frank was ashamed to find his eyes still wandering over the smaller boy's body. He may be a criminal, but there was nothing wrong with Frank enjoying his aesthetic appeal, was there? He was simply looking. And there couldnt have been more than two years difference in their ages, so surely Frank was doing nothing wrong.

 

And even with the justifications running rampant through his head as he rushed over to assist Maggie, Frank knew he was completely and utterly fucked.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am screeching internally. The ending is a little iffy for me but I really wanted to get this out and I just...I couldn't write. Like...I had the image in my head vividly but I wrote it and it was like 'He did the thing. Then the thing was done.' and I just wanted to bash my head into the wall.
> 
> But, I digress. I have a lot of plans. I dunno if it'll be as long as Breaking Time, but I suspect it'll be a long story. Once again, Thank you BSB so much for not only the inspiration, but permission to write for your AU.

Maggie eased the young blond into one of the chairs, offering another one of her gentle smiles as she did so. The boy returned the smile, albeit a bit sheepish, and his head tilted a bit. There was something charming in the way he held himself, and Frank had to harshly remind his own head that the boy was a criminal. There should be nothing charming about him. And just that thought alone made all desire rush out of him like a plug had been pulled.

"Donut, dear, what is it this time?" Maggie asked, and the boy sighed as he shook his head. He sat forward to tug his shirt up and over his head, and turned to show them his back.

Frank barely held back a surprised gasp. All down Donut's back were harsh red welts, the skin puffy and broken. Swallowing thickly, Frank held his hand up and it almost disgusted him to realize those scratches were in line with his fingers. Hickies, now scratches all over his back? Oh god, Frank suddenly felt sick. He obviously wasnt the only person to find the pretty blond...well, pretty. Had it been that other boy, Sarge? Donut didnt seem to have an issue with it and Maggie wasnt surprised, was this normal?

Then the thought hit him.

They were in a prison. A juvenile facility, yes, but a prison nonetheless. Which meant this young man was...was.... Frank covered his mouth as his eyes widened in shock. Maggie, however, rested a gentle hand on Donut's shoulder as she examined the wounds with a pained expression. She tutted quietly, shaking her head before straightening and focusing her attention on Frank.

"Alright. Get me some peroxide and some gauze." She commanded, and Frank jumped onto the order.

He paused a moment while in the supply closet, eyes still wide but unfocused. It hit him all at once, the reality of the situation. He was a nurse at a prison. That meant patching up people after fights, people hurting themselves and people having casual, rough and unsafe sex. He swallowed thickly, shaking his head with a huff. And he had thought the blond looked charming! He wanted to slap himself, and he rubbed both hands over his face.

Okay, Frank, he thought. Calm down. You were simply appreciating his physicality. Even someone like him can be attractive. There's nothing wrong with acknowledging that fact. He didnt want to act on it, he didnt want to be involved with the young man. So his panic was completely unwarranted. He took another moment to calm down, wincing when he heard Maggie call to him. She didn't sound angry, but she had a motherly aura about her that made Frank want to strive to please her.

He grabbed the gauze and peroxide from the shelves quickly, turning to hurry back to the nurse's side and hand her the supplies. Donut was now lying down on the single cot in the main office, arms crossed under his head and back facing up. With more light on his pale skin, Frank could see broken blood vessels and the fading marks from other scratches. More hickies littered the back of his shoulders and his neck, some so dark they were nearly black. As soon as Frank saw him again, that pretty face and soft looking lips, that disgust he had felt disappeared once more and he was awe struck by the boy's beauty. He swallowed thickly as he handed the gauze and peroxide over to Maggie.

Donut turned his head to look at Frank, bright eyes locking onto warm hazel eyes. He offered a tiny smile, one that made the pale freckles spattered over his cheeks a little more visible. Frank felt his lips twitch at the corners without him really wanting them to. He couldn't look away, despite how badly he wanted to. Why had he been so disgusted with the idea of liking this boy, again? Why was there something wrong with that? How could this sweet heart of a blond be bad?

And then Donut twitched with a hiss of pain as Maggie wiped at the injuries with the peroxide and Frank snapped back into reality. Criminal. He was a criminal. That's why this was bad. He could hear Maggie cooing to him apologetically as she cleaned his wounds, and he forced his eyes away from Donut's face.

Bandaging up the scratches only took a few minutes, and Frank helped with whatever Maggie asked. He felt his lips go dry when he had to touch Donut, and he couldnt bring himself to look at the other boy. When Donut sat up to tug his shirt back on, Frank could the the way he tried not to wince, and dammit when did he start looking at him again?

"Thank you, Maggie. And thank you, uh...." He furrowed his brows, and Maggie touched Donut's cheek, then his shoulder.

"His name is Frank. An intern here to help me out around my office. Sweet of him, isn't it? Wanting to help people?" She sighed wistfully again, and Donut offered a smile to her before turning his gaze to look at Frank.

"It's very sweet. I respect everyone in the medical profession." He touched Maggie's hand, then nodded to them both as he started to the door. "Again, thank you Maggie. And thank you, too, Doc." He winked at Frank as he said it, walking backwards out the door.

"You're welcome." Frank blinked. He had intended on saying that he wasn't a doctor, so why had he said 'you're welcome' instead? He shook his head, going to sit back down. Maggie touched his hair gently as she passed him to clean up the gauze.

*   *   *

Donut swept into the lunch room gracefully, plopping himself on one of the chairs between Sarge and Simmons. Sarge seemed to have fallen asleep, while Simmons watched with an exasperated expression as Tucker, Grif and Church bickered back and forth. Donut put a hand on his thigh, leaning a bit into him.

"You know how they are. They'll be over it in a few minutes." He commented. His voice seemed to shake their friends out of their own world and they snapped their heads up to look at him.

"Hey, Donut. How's your back?" Tucker asked, face softening as he relaxed in his seat, thigh bumping against Church's. Donut waved a dismissive hand.

"All cleaned up and bandaged." He announced with a firm nod. Sarge returned the nod, clapping a hand onto his shoulder briefly, and Donut jerked in surprise at the fact that he was actually awake.

Donut leaned forward a bit, eyes bright as if he was about to tell a secret. Tucker leaned right in with a smile, ignoring how Church scoffed at him despite knowing the elder was listening as well. Simmons leaned forward, too. Grif examined his nails, a clear sign that he was actually listening intently. Not that the group would let him know they knew that, however.

"So our lovely Maggie has an intern helping her in the office." Donut announced after a dramatic pause. He dramatically threw himself back into his seat, hands clasped over his heart. "Oh, you should have seen him. He was gorgeous. Dirty blond hair and hazel eyes. He's in the medical field, he must be smart. Oh, be still my beating heart!"

It went silent, an awkward tension falling over them all. Grif and Tucker locked eyes, unsure what to say. Sarge had tensed up, hands clenched and they could all hear his grumbles. After a few moments of silence, Simmons awkwardly cleared his throat and moved closer to Donut so he could place a hand on his shoulder.

"Uh, Donut?" He started. "Do you....think that's a good idea?" He asked gently, looking between Grif and Tucker as if they could help him. Tucker nodded.

"Yeah, man, are you sure you should be doing this?" He added, pushing a loose dread off of his face. Donut rolled his eyes with a big sigh and he waved a hand as if brushing the thought away.

"Don't worry! I said he was attractive, I didn't say I was planning on jumping his bones!" He snorted, offering a smile to his friends.

"Sorry, dude. We just don't want you going through any more shit. We can't trust anyone who isn't in the system with us." Grif answered, stuffing his bread roll into his mouth.

"I am not in a system. I am in a chair." Caboose announced. The tension broke as Tucker and Grif sighed into their hands and Simmons hid a chuckle behind his hand.

"Yes, Caboose. You are in a chair." Church agreed, rolling his eyes. Caboose absolutely beamed.

It stayed quiet for a long moment, before one by the one the group broke into laughter.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoop whoop hello friends. So I got a little more detailed with our the others in this one. References to my own theories about Simmons' past and references to things that BloodstainedBlonde has confirmed in the AU. I'm gonna try to make the chapters a tiny bit longer, if no one seems bothered by that. I need to work on that, I think. As you may have noticed, I tend to stick to drabbles. xD
> 
> And yes, I used 'XD' unironically, wanna fight about it?

Their laughter was still dying down when the loud siren-like bell rang to indicate the end of lunch. Donut kept giggling as he stood, locking his arm around Simmons' as he stepped away from the table. Simmons tensed briefly, more out of instinct than anything, before relaxing carefully and offering a smile to the blond. Grif was already slipping off with Tucker beside him, Church on Tucker's other side and standing close to the darker boy. Simmons seemed to deflate when he saw the trio take off in the opposite direction of the classrooms. Donut leaned his head on Simmons' shoulder.

"It's not you and you know it, Simmons." He said to him, tugging him along to get to the classrooms with Caboose fumbling behind them clumsily. Simmons sighed

"I know." He pressed his lips into a thin line, wanting to say more. Donut stayed silent a long moment to give him the chance. When Simmons didn't continue, he patted the arm he was still holding lovingly.

"You're letting it get to you. So he and Tucker fucked once or twice, it's no big deal. Grif is head over heels for you and everyone knows it." He assured. Simmons' smile was half hearted.

"He'd hate me if circumstances were different. If we met in school, he'd have been just like everyone else..." Donut stopped and Simmons cut off.

The blond forced Simmons to pull to a stop, in the middle of a mostly deserted hallway. Most kids who were actually going to school were there, already. Everyone else was as far away from the classroom as possible. Donut let his hands hover over Simmons' cheeks, silently asking permission to touch. When Simmons gave an almost imperceptible nod, Donut's soft hands rested on his cheeks and forced the taller boy to look at him.

"Circumstances aren't different." He said firmly, keeping his voice soft. "These are the circumstances you two were given and this is what you're making of it. Grif is in here with you, and he cares about you. It doesn't matter if this is how it would have happened otherwise because this is how it's happening now."

Simmons swallowed thickly, eyes widening a bit. He stayed quiet for a long moment, and Donut kept their eyes locked as he waited. Eventually, Simmons let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and the tension drained from him. He gave a small, tentative smile that Donut returned brightly. Absently, Donut brushed his thumb over Simmons' cheek. Simmons opened his mouth to say something, to thank Donut for recognizing his insecurities and tearing them down instead of agreeing, but before he said anything the bell for class to begin cut him off and they both winced.

"Come on, then. Looks like we're late. " Donut nodded once, locking arms with Simmons again. "You've never been late before, I'm sure you'll get off easy." He added with a wink. Simmons' chuckle was quiet, but genuine. Donut gestured with his head, and the two continued on to the classroom.

*   *   *

Frank expected Maggie to sit back down once she had tossed away the used pieces of guaze, but she passed to the hooks on the wall to grab her purse instead. She hooked it on her shoulder and went to pat at a metal filing cabinet.

"Could I trouble you to document this in Donut's file while I sneak off for lunch?" She asked, and Frank stood immediately with a smile and a nod.

"Of course. Go ahead and eat, I've got it covered." He assured, and Maggie absolutely beamed. Despite how much she seemed to enjoy helping these kids, Frank could clearly see the dark bags under the older woman's eyes and it suddenly hit him that she had been doing this by herself for god knows how long.

"Thank you so much, sweetie! This cabinet has everyone's files, alphabetical by last name. The incident reports are fairly straight forward but if there's anything you're not sure of, just ask about when I get back, okay?" She tilted her head, and Frank nodded with his own smile. It broke his heart to see how relieved she seemed. No one ever helped her at all, did they? They just took advantage of her kindness, he was sure of it. Perhaps a moment or two too late, Frank nodded and Maggie stepped toward him to pat lovingly at his cheek, like a grandmother might do, and he smiled.

"I won't be more than half an hour, I promise." She assured him.

Frank waited until Maggie had left before sitting down, sure she'd linger if he started before she was gone. He flicked through the files until he found Donut, F. The file seemed thicker than the others, and he wasn't sure if that should worry him or not. He settled in the seat behind the desk, suddenly tense with nerves. What would he find inside this file? What was he going to learn about this angel of a boy? He shook his head before his thoughts could wander further. He couldn't read through the file! It was wrong, it wasn't his business to read it! His job was simply to document this single incident and be done with it!

And yet, even as he was thinking this, Frank was flipping the file open and going back through the pages. Scratches, fat lip, scratches, scratches, bruises around the wrist, split lip, rope burn on his throat. Frank slammed the file shut, eyes wide as he stared at the name on the front of the folder. Oh dear god. Both of his hands slipped up over his face, and he rubbed at his eyes.  
Was he doing this willingly? It was clear to Frank what these wounds and injuries all meant, but what wasn't clear was whether or not Donut was okay with it. If he was being forced into this, surely someone would stop it?

Shaking his head, Frank opened the file once more to fill out the latest incident.

*   *   *

The next three days, Frank's mind was locked on to that file. All of the information he had taken in. He couldn't shake the odd, worried nagging in the back of his mind. He was half tempted to ask Maggie, but the woman seemed far too sweet to be willing to gossip about her patients like that. So he was left wondering, his own speculations running through his mind and systematically debunking each other. And through all of it, he couldn't figure out why. Why did he care so much? Why did it matter to him what this little delinquent did, attractive or not? This boy's...habits weren't Frank's concern.

Frank was finishing up wrapping a wounded arm when Donut was escorted in again, at the beginning of Frank's fourth day there. This time, he was being guided in by two boys, one rather short with dark skin and bright eyes. The second seemed conflicted over his concern, as if he didn't want to care about the blond they were bringing in but ice blue eyes undeniably worried. Frank could already see his lips swelling, and he was certain there was a cut inside his mouth.

But even with the obviously painful swelling, Donut offered Frank and smile and once again, the nurse-in-training spiraled into conflicted confusion once more. Frank's own lips twitched into a returning smile, hands stalling in their movements to bandage up the young man's arm. Maggie gently took the bandages from him, smiling and gesturing toward Donut with her head.

"Let me finish Donny up and you can get started with Donut, okay?" She said, and Frank nodded dumbly.

He went to guide Donut to another chair, raising a brow when the other two young men argued in hushed whispers over whether or not to leave their friend there. He shook his head, turning to face the two fully and he squared his shoulders, realizing perhaps too late that he was smaller than the bigger - and more aggressive looking - of the two.

"He'll be fine here. You two should return to wherever you're supposed to be." He said firmly. The taller one raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

"Hey, no offense Doc, but fuck off." He announced. Frank felt his eyebrow twitch.

"I'm not a doctor." He demanded. The smaller boy rolled his eyes and his fingers wrapped gently around the taller's wrist.

"C'mon, Church, Donut will be fine. Even if you don't trust this dude, we all trust Maggie and she's right there." He said, head cocking to the side and dreads falling off his shoulders.

Frank couldn't help but be mildly offended by that. Of the people in the room they shouldn't trust, they chose _him_? Out of the criminals they spent their entire days with, it was _Frank_ they didn't trust? He felt his jaw clenching up tightly, but he bit his tongue. He didn't need to start a fight. Not with these young men. Volatile young men, likely to actually hurt him. And besides, he didn't like fighting anyway. It was why he was a nurse, he enjoyed helping people not hurting them.

He glared after the two as they left the office, absently noticing how their fingers laced together as they slipped out of sight.


End file.
